1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to machines which are used to promote resource recycling efforts. More specifically, this invention relates to an improved apparatus for crushing workpieces such as aluminum and steel beverage cans.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As the known deposits of minerals in the earth become exhausted and more expensive to recover, industry is beginning to find that recycled resources are becoming increasingly cost competitive. The decreasing availability of space which is usable for waste disposal has also caused environmentalists and urban planners alike to support increased recycling efforts throughout society.
As community recycling programs proliferate, more time and money is being devoted to the logistics which are involved in the collection and recovery of recoverable waste materials. To this end, programs are encouraging their participants to crush metal cans prior to collection in order to reduce their volume during transport. However, crushing such containers by hand or by foot is usually inefficient and is sometimes dangerous.
Although can crushing machines exist, none to date have proven to be very successful in the commercial and residential realm. One reason for this is that existing designs have required fairly large electric motors in order to generate the torque which is necessary to crush a can. This has made such machines relatively heavy and expensive. Other disadvantages of some of the existing designs is their tendency to jam during operation due to uneven force transmission, and a tendency for the motor to be damaged when an unyielding workpiece is engaged.
It is clear that there has existed a long and unfilled need in the art for a can crusher which is relatively light and inexpensive, which is less likely to jam during operation, and which is protected against overload when an unyielding workpiece is engaged.